


Of Bad Boys and Cute Charms

by crystalklances



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Bad Boy Keith (Voltron), Fluff, Fluff and Humor, Flustered Lance (Voltron), M/M, Shy Lance (Voltron), Smitten Keith (Voltron), Soft Keith (Voltron), Tooth-Rotting Fluff, yes he's bad boy but this is me writing and this is with Lance of COURSE he's softest
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-12
Updated: 2018-11-12
Packaged: 2019-08-22 14:20:24
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,345
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16599536
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/crystalklances/pseuds/crystalklances
Summary: On a bad day, Keith runs into his crush. Words the shy boy blurts out at the encounter lead to a chance for Keith to make a move.





	Of Bad Boys and Cute Charms

**Author's Note:**

> I was asked to write anything with bad boy Keith and shy Lance as long as it's fluff, so I was happy to deliver! It took me a while to complete because of work, other obligations, health and other stresses, but I'm finally able to share it.
> 
> This fic is also just one big reference to pusheen the cat, ahaha. And I grew quite attached to this AU I came up with. I hope you'll enjoy!

Keith wasn’t in the best mood when he left the race course. He’d been far behind his best times that afternoon. What made it worse, it turned out that there was an issue with the engine of his bike for the races so now he had to wait for the mechanics to fix it.

He was walking that day rather than take his street bike to get around campus, and so caught up in frustrated thoughts that he didn’t pay attention to what was in front of him. It was for that reason that he didn’t see the other person approaching until the collision happened.

Keith wasn’t sure what was happening there. All he knew was that when he felt a body bumping into him face first, heard the small exclamation of pain, his arms reached out in reflex. And suddenly, he found himself with an armful of cute boy. A cute boy who was blinking up at him with royal blue eyes widened behind red frames and soft-looking lips parted ever-so-slightly.

And Keith’s heart skipped a beat when he realized that _he was holding the cute boy who’d caught his eye ever since the start of classes_. And they were so close right now that Keith could’ve counted every freckle on the boy’s cheek, every long eyelash framing his eyelids. How did he get so lucky?

For a moment they stood like this, eyes locked, not saying a word, unmoving. Keith wasn’t sure if time was even passing at all. He didn’t want to let go, wanted to _say something_ , some cool line that would impress the cutie. But it had to be now that his mind was drawing a blank, only adding to his frustration. Which he knew usually mirrored right in his expression—which really wasn’t what he needed when he had a cutie in his arms that he wanted to secure a chance with.

There was a gasp. Royal blue eyes shining up at Keith, in an awed whisper, the boy blurted out, “You really _are_ just like Pusheenosaurus!”

Keith blinked, caught off guard and confused. “...What?”

The boy’s face fell into flustered nervousness and Keith inwardly cursed his bluntness, his resting grumpy face. The boy fidgeted, effectively freeing himself from Keith’s hold. “Oh, uh, nevermind, forget I said anything. I’m sorry for bothering you!”

His voice was hurried and high-pitched, and just as hastily, he ran off. Keith looked after him, catching a glimpse of an embroidered cartoon cat on the sweater he was wearing. For a fleeting second, Keith thought _how good the boy would look in his black leather jacket_. He shook the thought away and turned back to where he had been headed to.

To his surprise, Keith found himself in front of his dorm building, not having noticed he’d walked that far already. And if this was where the boy had come from when they collided, did that mean they were staying in the same building? Keith’s heart beat faster. Could they even be on the same floor without Keith ever knowing? He hadn’t given much care to who was or wasn’t living in the same building before, nor thought about possibilities of meeting someone special at all, but now, he had to admit the idea was exciting.

He went right up to his room, putting his gym bag in the corner by the door. He stripped off his shoes and jacket, tossed his beanie on the back of a chair, then traded leather for sweats. He settled down on the bed with his laptop and wasted no time to start a google search. He had to know what the cutie had meant by calling him a “pusheenosaurus.”

When the result screen loaded, Keith stared at the screen with a blank face. “A green cat...dinosaur?” he mumbled, so confused his thought wanted to be vocalized. “It’s kinda cute. How am I like that? Is it the angry face?”

Diving into the research, soon, he learned all about how Pusheenosaurus was just one of many types of Pusheen, an absolutely adorable cartoon cat. Which he recognized was the same cat the cute boy had on the back of his sweater. And with every picture he looked at, Keith couldn’t stop thinking about how Pusheen had the same energy of cuteness as the boy. Except Keith thought the boy was the cutest ever, but Pusheen was definitely up there.

“So squishy,” Keith mumbled, looking at photos of Pusheen plush toys. “So huggable.”

Then, he made the most mindblowing discovery. There was a _Mermaid Pusheen_. He remembered one time hearing the boy talk excitedly about the ocean and how, when he was a kid, he had pretended to be a mermaid. Keith knew he _needed to_ have this mermaid cat.

Before he could think about what he was doing, he ordered a small plush backpack clip of Mermaid Pusheen, along with an exclusive pin he found. Just because it had _the perfect size_ for the collar of his leather jacket. And not a moment later, he found himself following Pusheen on every social media he was on.

Keith was usually an absolute dog person. Who would have thought that he would suddenly find himself obsessed with a cartoon cat just because it reminded him of the cute boy he had a huge crush on?

Eventually, he reluctantly got started on homework. But he couldn’t get the encounter out of his mind.

 

For the next few days, Keith was _hyperaware_ of the cute boy wherever he went, be it in classes they shared, at the dining hall, or just anywhere around campus. He was sure now that they were staying at the same dorm building. How had he never noticed that detail before?

But most of all, Keith took note of the ways he always had at least one item of Pusheen on him, some subtle like a pencil topper in class, some more obvious like sweaters. The one constant, however, was the small plush clip on the boy’s backpack. _Pusheenosaurus_.

Keith noticed that the boy seemed to have a habit of detaching it from his backpack to have it sit on his desk in class. Further inspection revealed that he held it in his left hand sometimes, squeezing softly, usually when he appeared to be nervous. Frequently, he caught the boy smiling at the small Pusheenosaurus. Sometimes, he caught the boy staring at _him_ but whenever he noticed that he was caught, the boy looked away hastily, the air of flusteredness making Keith’s heart squeeze.

It was obvious that Pusheenosaurus seemed to be the boy’s favorite. Still, Keith was confused. Why did he usually catch the boy staring when he was also smiling down at the plush? And why had he appeared so _starstruck_ when he said Keith was just like Pusheenosaurus?

Keith was dying to know. He hoped that once he had his own Pusheen, he would be able to strike up a conversation _and be able to hold it_. He could tell that the boy wasn’t _scared_ , unlike people usually were, not that Keith particularly cared with just anyone. But analyzing his every action, his demeanor, Keith realized that the cute boy was extremely shy, _especially when it came to Keith_ , it seemed. It was for this reason that he wanted to do it _right_ , and hopefully, approaching the boy with a shared special interest would break the ice. If he could at least find out his name, right from his own lips, that would be a success to Keith already.

When Keith was finally able to pick up his parcel, he was excited. Immediately, he attached the clip of Mermaid Pusheen to his backpack and carefully applied the pin to the collar of his jacket. Looking at his reflection in the mirror, he was pleased. Maybe sometime he could also get a pin for his beanies, or even a patch for his jacket. He’d even wear Pusheen piercings if there were more options than just girly earrings. Sure, Keith had his ears pierced, but he preferred simple, minimalist studs. And then there were all the other places he had pierced, like his tongue and eyebrows. He didn’t remember seeing anything Pusheen for those.

As the resident “bad boy” biker, Keith was supposed to hold up a reputation, but frankly, he didn’t care. If he liked a cute cartoon kitty, he’d wear it proudly. And if he could impress and ensure comfort for his crush that way, that was just the cherry on top.

When he left his room to get to class, he felt powerful, bursting with confidence that he would get closer to the cute boy. If people stared, he paid them no mind. But it had always been like this—he’d been told before that he oozed an aura of confidence, of not caring if people thought badly of him. He was who he was and always would be.

He was prepared to wait all day for the opportunity to make his move, even if he was also known for his impatience and impulsiveness. To his delighted surprise, the chance came to him readily.

Just when he had sat down for lunch, the cute boy came walking by his table, holding his tray and looking around with a slight frown. Keith figured that he must’ve been trying to find an empty table. He smiled in triumph. This was his chance.

Raising his arm out just in front of the boy, he said, “Hey. Wanna join me?”

The boy stared in surprise, glanced around briefly as if to make sure there wasn’t a mistake, before he replied, “Um, if it’s okay…?”

“Yeah, of course.” Keith pulled his own tray closer to himself as a gesture of invitation, to show the boy there was _definitely_ space for two at this table. “Just come on and sit down.”

A shy smile bloomed on the boy’s face and Keith felt ready to shed a tear. _Too cute, too bright_. The boy put the tray on the table before taking off his backpack to place it on the seat and finally slip onto the bench, right across Keith. Keith felt in seventh heaven, getting just this far, getting a chance to see that smile up close. Now he just had to keep up momentum to win the race.

Keith had taken off his jacket when he sat down to eat, so the pin of Pusheen wasn’t visible. However, Keith inwardly clapped his own shoulder for placing his backpack the way he had—with the front facing to the other side of the table. Which meant that the cute boy would be able to see his new backpack clip.

He continued eating his steak to give the boy a sense of ease and comfort, to show that everything was cool with this situation and no need to be shy. He wanted to high-five himself when the boy started eating his own lunch.

But while he was still trying to come up with a way to get a conversation going, there was a gasp and a breathy whisper. “It’s Mermaid Pusheen!”

Looking up, he could see the boy give him that same shiny look like the time they ran into each other. Keith smiled. Mission success. “Cute, right?”

“So cute!” It was visible the boy was trying not to squeak. “Pusheen is just the cutest!”

“Yeah, she really is.” _But you’re cuter_. “My favorite has to be Mermaid Pusheen.”

“Really? Mine is Pusheenosaurus!” The boy showed his own backpack clip, beaming brightly.

 _So cute_. And this was his chance to probe into the matter. “Why Pusheenosaurus?” he asked. “It’s so… different from the others.”

The boy glanced down at Pusheenosaurus before he started speaking. “Well, it’s just… the angry face, it’s just so _adorable_.” By the end, he looked right into Keith’s eyes, only to turn his gaze away hastily as he blushed furiously.

 _Oh_. Did this mean that he thought _Keith_ was cute? That sure was odd, combined with the fact the boy wasn’t scared of Keith, either. But it was odd in the way that made Keith’s skin tingle with excitement, knowing that his crush _liked_ him, in one way or another. Now he _definitely_ had to make a move.

With all the smoothness he could muster, he said, “We share a bunch of classes, but I’m drawing a blank on your name right now. Can you give me a reminder?”

Smiling, still with that shy edge, the boy replied, “It’s Lance. The name’s Lance.”

“Lance.” Keith tasted the name on his tongue. He knew he wanted to say it again and again. “It’s nice to meet you. I’m Keith.”

“I know,” Lance blurted out. “I-I mean, you're the star of the motorsports team, so—”

Keith couldn’t help but chuckle. _How_ could Lance just keep getting cuter and cuter by the minute? Unable to hold back, he teased, “You’re a fan, huh?”

The blush only deepened as he stuttered, “I’m, I’m not, I mean, I’m an admirer, but—”

Keith’s heart jumped frantically at hearing Lance say _admirer_. At the same time, it squeezed in his chest because _he was too precious_. He breathed another laugh and with a smile that was half reassuring, half flirty smirk, he said, “Hey, it’s cool. It’s nice that I get to hang out with a fan who’s also a classmate.” Was this what the _secret admirer who turns out to be your crush_ cliché in stories was all about?

Lance’s hand holding his fork hovered above his plate as he blurted out, “You want to hang out with _me_?”

Keith nodded. “Yeah. I absolutely want to hang out with you.”

“Oh, um, thank you?”

If Lance kept this up, Keith was _positive_ he would end up just shedding a tear and asking him out right on the spot. But he had to keep his cool, keep up his game, keep up his reputation. But boy, did Lance make him _soft_ , make him want to hug and protect.

“I should thank _you_ ”, Keith finally said. “For still talking to me even though I scared you away the other day.”

“You didn’t scare me away!” Lance leaned forward as he spoke, fork now forgotten on his plate. There was a serious glint in his eyes. “I was just… I was just so embarrassed that I just said that out loud like that right to your face!” He leaned back again and Keith thought he could see how he was fighting the urge to not hide his face in his hands or run away. Instead, he picked up his fork to continue eating.

And all the nerves in Keith’s brain seemed to have switched gears to port him right to galaxy brain. That was proof right here, from his own lips, that _he really wasn’t scared of Keith_. Keith just made him _flustered_ , which had to be a good thing, right? This had to mean that _Keith totally had a chance_. He totally had a chance to bond with the boy and romance him. _He could end this school year with the cutest boyfriend_. His mind was ready to combust at the mere idea. A fluttery warmth was spreading in his stomach. His fingertips were tingling from the urge to reach out and take Lance’s hand. To keep his hands from acting out on it, he occupied them with cutting his meat.

“I’m glad that you did,” he said, holding eye contact. “It got me to learn about Pusheen. I had no clue what you meant by comparing me to Pusheenosaurus so I had to look it up the moment I was back in my room.”

“So you’re a fan of Pusheen because of me?”

“Yeah, you could put it that way.”

Lance beamed and Keith felt so blessed. Even if he thought he might need sunglasses because this was like looking right into the sun. “I’m so happy I get to share Pusheen with you!”

Mission was a full success. Keith couldn’t believe his luck. How did it just keep getting better? Whatever higher power it was that had given its blessings, Keith sent a thank you with his best regards.

“I can already tell that Pusheen is making my life better, so thank you for that,” Keith said. What he really wanted to say was, _it’s your cute charm and bright smile_. Though Pusheen came close too, especially for basically playing cupid. Suddenly he wondered if there actually was a cupid Pusheen. There should be one anyway, he thought.

“Pusheen really is amazing!” Lance paused, his smile turning sheepish. “Though it’s a surprise that a tough guy like you would like something so cute. Then again…” He rested one elbow on the table, holding his cheek in his hand, and absentmindedly picked at his food with the other. “There _is_ the trope of the bad boy with the heart of gold. I’ve always thought that was you.”

Keith almost choked on his soda. Was this for real? He was starting to feel like Santa had come to visit him early. Though, honestly, if he really had a chance to call himself Lance’s boyfriend eventually, he wouldn’t even need anything for Christmas. For the next five years, to be exact.

He was almost tempted to poke his own hand with his fork—he could just use the excuse that he wanted to see if it’d leave a mark on his gloves—to test if he was dreaming. _Almost_. The rush he’d been feeling all over his body, so similar to the rush on the race course, yet so much sweeter, was proof enough that he was very much awake. He was so aware of the sensations in his body. Suddenly, he began to understand what people were always talking about. He felt like he was racing at the speed of love.

The noise of the people around them in the dining hall seemed to fade in Keith’s ears. All that mattered was that he was sitting here, having lunch together with Lance. That they were talking. _Flirting_ , Keith dared say.

Lance was smiling at him, looking at him over the red frames of his glasses expectantly, yet shily with a hopeful glint in his deep blue eyes. Keith huffed a laugh and gave him a playful smirk. “Yeah, you got me. I’m really soft for cute cats… and cute boys.” He lowered his voice to a smooth murmur and angled his head to gaze right into Lance’s eyes as he finished speaking, hoping Lance would catch the hint.

The deep flush on Lance’s cheeks and the soft gasp were answer enough. Keith felt like a miniature version of him was running in circles through his brain, shouting “Oh My God!” over and over while his demeanor remained as it was. Well, at least he hoped he looked cool and collected. He wanted to _impress_ , after all.

When they finished their meals, Keith put on his jacket, making sure to flash the pin of Pusheen in Lance’s direction. They left to dispose of their trays before walking out of the dining hall.

Before their ways could separate, Keith took hold of Lance’s arm, prompting him to look up with wide, curious eyes. With his heartbeat echoing in his own ears, Keith said, “Hey, you should come join me for lunch all the time. Whenever you want to. And just hang out whenever outside of class.”

“Yeah,” Lance breathed before he cleared his throat. “I mean, sure, yeah, why not?”

Keith breathed a laugh. “Cool. I’ll see you later, yeah?”

“Y-yeah, see you later!”

Keith waved and the last thing he saw before turning around to walk the other way was Lance waving back with that sweet, shy smile. Keith’s heart was thumping in his chest, steady and fast.

He’d successfully made the first lap in the race of his romantic life. And he was excited to reach the finish line, striving to be victorious; hoping he’ll be the one lucky to call himself Lance’s boyfriend.

**Author's Note:**

> There's absolutely adorable precioius art inspired by this fic!! Please take a look and reblog/find Raiya on twitter if you like it ❤️💙  
> [I am Keithosaurus](http://raiyakun.tumblr.com/post/182625020194)
> 
> You can find me on [twitter](https://twitter.com/crystalklances), [tumblr](https://crystalklances.tumblr.com) and [instagram](https://instagram.com/crystalklances) where you can find out about different ways you can support me!


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